LLC - FAQ

At Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, we offer four different Living Learning Communities (LLCs) so that students can choose the best fit for themselves. Living Learning Communities are residential groups within the greater Saint Mary's community, helping students connect and grow during their first year at college.

Living Learning Communities can be defined as groups of students who choose to live together because of common interests, common goals, and are transitioning through similar moments within their lives.

Each LLC has a course attached to it that the students attend together, fulfilling their first year Lasallian Core Tradition course requirement. The LLC members take this course together, further building strong study habits, friendships, and relationships with their faculty advisors.

Living Learning Communities (LLCs) offer unique living and learning opportunities to campus residents. Research shows LLC students have higher cumulative grade point averages (GPAs) and increased interaction with faculty.

Living Learning Communities also help create closely knit communities and bonds which help create a support system for each of the community members.

Living Learning Communities allow for immediate commonalities with other students in the community around you, so friendships can be more easily facilitated. The connected courses for each of the individual Living Learning Communities allow for automatic study groups within the communities.

There are many advantages to Living Learning Communities. The advantages range from the fact you will have built in study groups for courses connected with the Living Learning Community to the fact that you will have chances to continually connect with instructors and faculty advisors who oversee the Living Learning Community.
In the Living Learning Community you will also be able to interact with individuals who have similar interests as you. These same individuals have differences and diversity which you will be able to learn and grow from.

First of all, you must be a First Year Student. Each Living Learning Community member is required to take the connected courses for a given Living Learning Community, once accepted you will be registered for the specific course associated with your community. You will be required to attend all programming related to this course and all continued programming the following semester as presented by your faculty advisors. This amount is well balanced, so as not to interfere with other activities, involvements, and courses.

Yes, you are still able to request a roommate through the your Admission's Office paperwork. When you fill out the housing materials you select the Living Learning Program and you are still able to identify the roommate you would like to placed with. Make sure this roommate selects you to and applies to the community you both wish to be in.

Faculty members will be involved through teaching the connected courses and working with a collaborative team of programmers for outside-the-classroom experiences based on the communities theme. This collaborative team is built with members of the faculty, The Office of Student Life, and the Student Success Center. Faculty members will also be involved as the advisors to each Living Learning Community. Faculty involvement allows for strong connections with all LLC students.

You will receive an application through the mail with a brochure inviting you to apply. Fill out the information and contact your Admission's Councilor with any questions. You can also contact the Office of Residence Life at reslife@smumn.edu with any questions or to apply directly.